NY Metro Help

The maze most brands never get out of.

The NYC retail landscape is overwhelmingly fragmented — and I've spent over a decade learning how to get through it.

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The Maze

The NYC retail landscape is scattered across dozens of buying groups. No single front door — just a thousand side ones.

The Gatekeepers

Distributor politics and contracts stand between brands and the shelf. DSDs, beer guys, sub-distributors, Korean distributors — it's a mess.

"Shelf space in NYC is harder to crack than a Saturday table at 4 Charles — technically possible, spiritually devastating."

— John Borelli, Founder
The Fix

Relationships built over a decade, not overnight.

Distribution and retail access is the hardest part of scaling a food or beverage brand in this city. I've spent over a decade building the relationships that get your product reviewed, placed, and reordered.

Distributor Partners

Direct relationships at the buyer level, not just a shared warehouse account.

Retail Accounts

Regional chains and independent grocery groups I work with directly.
NY Metro
About Me

Born in the industry. Built for New York.

John Borelli

13 years scaling emerging food and beverage brands across the NYC metro market — from first distribution call to permanent shelf placement.

Deep ties to NYC retail and distribution — I know the buyers, the routes, and how to get brands onto shelves that matter.

Born and raised to appreciate CPG — my mother, Carol Dollard, spent 18 years as a senior executive at PepsiCo and was formerly COO of vitaminwater, one of the most iconic beverage brands in CPG history.

Brands & Results

Brands I've helped scale — and where they ended up.

Alani Nu

Energy Drink · Congo Brands
Acquired by Celsius · $1.8B

Prime Hydration

Sports Hydration · Congo Brands
$1B+ in revenue, year two

Flow Alkaline Spring Water

Premium Spring Water
IPO · Toronto Stock Exchange

Seedlip

Non-Alcoholic Spirits · Pioneer
Acquired by Diageo
Retail Relationships

Major retailers I've worked with.

Across grocery, natural, convenience, and on-premise channels over the course of my career.

Grocery & Mass

  • Walmart
  • Stop & Shop
  • Giant Food / The Giant Company
  • Wakefern / ShopRite
  • Whole Foods
  • Hannaford
  • Jewel-Osco

Specialty & Natural

  • Sprouts
  • The Fresh Market
  • Erewhon
  • Bristol Farms
  • Jimbo's
  • Gelson's
  • DeCicco & Sons
  • Kings & Balducci's

Convenience

  • 7-Eleven
  • EG America
  • Global Partners
  • Cross America Partners
  • QuickChek
  • Rutter's
  • Seasons Corner Market

Food Service & On-Premise

  • Just Salad
  • Kimpton
  • Westin
  • Marriott
Beyond NYC

Everything outside NY metro sales.

Sales and distribution across the NY metro market is where I lead personally. For operations, branding, shopper marketing, and formulation, I bring in advisors with real category expertise — brought in for the specific question at hand, not staffed on full-time.

Operations

Operations & packaging help

Operational and packaging support — co-packing, logistics, packaging sourcing, and the infrastructure that gets product made and moved reliably.

Branding & Marketing

Brand identity & positioning

Brand voice, positioning, and identity work that gives a product a clear point of view before it ever hits shelf.

Shopper Marketing

In-store & shopper marketing

Trade and shopper marketing that gets a product noticed on shelf — displays, promotions, and in-store activation.

Formulation

Product & recipe development

Formulation guidance to get a product from concept to a shelf-ready recipe, with an eye toward cost, category standards, and what actually sells.

Finance & P&L

Margins & forecasting

P&L management, cost modeling, and margin analysis so growth stays profitable, not just fast.

Capital Raising

Fundraising & investor strategy

Pitch materials, financial modeling, and fundraising strategy to help brands raise the capital they need to fund growth.

Meet the advisors behind this Talk to us about your brand
Advisors

Expertise on call, for all facets of your business.

I work directly with every client, on every project. These advisors lend perspective from their own track records when a specific question calls for it.

Mishka Aminov

Mishka Aminov

Director of Business Development, Gold Coast Distributors

Key relationship driver behind Gold Coast's emerging brand growth, with deep expertise in NYC specialty account development and brand incubation across Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Queens.

Avi Kaner

Avi Kaner

Former Co-Owner, Morton Williams Supermarkets

Co-owner of Morton Williams through its 2025 acquisition by Wakefern. Three decades of NYC grocery leadership with direct lines to buyers across Manhattan retail. Formerly an active member of Allegiance Retail Services.

Michael Zuckerman

Michael Zuckerman

Partner, 3600 Partners

Partner at 3600 Partners, a CPG food & beverage VC fund. Former owner of Zuckerman Honickman — the 130-year beverage packaging leader in glass, plastic, and aluminum cans, acquired by TricorBraun in 2022.

Carol Dollard

Carol Dollard

Former COO, vitaminwater / Smartwater

18 years in flavor technology at PepsiCo, with operating leadership as COO of vitaminwater and Smartwater under Glacéau.

Get In Touch

Let's get your brand on shelf.

Tell me where you are and where you're trying to go. I'll follow up within one business day.

Email
john@pinstripecpg.com
Working With
Emerging food & beverage brands
Focus
NY metro sales & retail, plus operations, marketing, formulation, finance & capital raising
Engagement
Retainer & project-based
Submits directly to john@pinstripecpg.com — no email app needed.